Tire and wheel assembly lifting device



Jan. 30, 1951 5, VARABEAU 2,539,711

TIRE AND WHE EL ASSEMBLY LIFTING DEVICE Filed July 21, 1949 mveafor: Frcc/er/ck 6'. l arobeau.

Patented Jan. 30, l951 TIREAND WHEEL ASSEMBLY LIFTING DEVICE Frederick G. Varabeau, Melfort, Saskatchewan,

Canada Application July 21, 1949, Serial No. 106,059

1 Claim.

My invention relates to new and useful improvements in tire and wheel assembly lifting devices, an object of my invention being to provide a device of the character herewithin described which facilitates the positioning of the tire and wheel assembly prior to mounting same upon the wheel studs. I

A further object of my invention is to provide a device of the character herewithin described which can be actuated readily by one person and which furthermore includes an adjusting bracket in order to maintain the height of the cradle at the correct position in order that the wheel and tire assembly may be mounted upon the studs.

Another object of my invention is to provide a device of the character herewithin described which includes a stabilizer in order to facilitate the positioning of the device and to prevent rotation thereof.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a device of the character herewithin described which is adaptable for use with tires of varying cross-sections.

Another object of my invention is to provide a device of the character herewithin described which is economical in manufacture, simple in operation, and otherwise well suited for the purpose for which it is designed.

With the foregoing objects in View and such other objects and advantages as will become apparent to those skilled in the art to which this invention relates as this specification proceeds, my invention consists essentially in the arrangement and construction of parts all as hereinafter more particularly described, reference being had to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the device in the raised position.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of my device.

In the drawings like characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the different fi ures.

When changing a tire and wheel of a vehicle, considerable difliculty is experienced in positioning the apertures within the wheel flange in alignment with the studs upon the hub, particularly with the majority of present day vehicles, the wheels and tires of which are relatively heavy.

The present invention has been designed to support the wheel and tire assembly at the required height above the ground, whereupon the studs and apertures may be aligned and the wheel mounted thereon with the minimum of effort.

Proceeding now to describe my invention in tation of the bar when in use.

ment the stabilizer takes the form of .a tubular detail it will be seen upon reference to the accompanyingdrawing that I have provided an elongated cylindrical lever-bar i having a handle 2 secured thereto at one end thereof. The handle '2 may take the form of an enlarged portion screwed or welded to the lever-bar 'l or may be in the form of a rubber grip in order to provide v an efiicient handhold when operating the device.

The opposite end 3 of the lever-bar is provided with stabilizing means' i in order to prevent ro- In this embodiplate I, the interior surface 8 of which is formed to complement the cross-section of contour of a conventional tire. What I define as the rear wall 9 of the cradle continues upwardly from the leverbar I and terminates with the upper edge at H! which curves in the opposite direction to provide a lead-in for the associated tire.

In order to assist in the gripping of the tire when embraced transversely by the cradle 5, I have provided serrations or ridges l l at the base [2 of the plate I.

In the embodiment illustrated in the accompanying drawing I have designed the cradle 5 so that it is capable of receiving tires of different widths by providing a coil spring i3, which extends between the upper portion [0 of the plate I and the lever-bar I. This spring is located with,

in a vertical slot [4 formed within the rear wall 9 of the plate I, thereby forming a chord to the semi-circular configuration of the inner wall 8 of the plate I.

In order to adjust the height of cradle 5 from the ground I have provided an angulated bracket l5 comprising a substantially vertical portion [6 and a foot or ground engaging portion [1. The vertical portion is is apertured to enable the bracket to be-slidably mounted upon the leverbar I and capable of endwise movement thereon. From the foregoing it will be appreciated that this bracket I5 may be moved lengthwise along the lever-bar l, the portion l'l engaging with the ground thereby inclining the lever-bar I from the horizontal which has the effect of adjusting the height of the cradle from'the ground.

In operation, the angulated bracket is moved towards the handle 2 thereby lowering the cradle toward the ground. The tire and wheel assembly is rolled into position within the cradle, the semi-circular plate I embracing the tire transversely. In this connection it will be observed that the aforementioned spring l3 grasps the wall of the tire and that the aforementioned serrations ll assist in preventing undesirable movement when the tire and wheel assembly is in this position. The lifting device is now positioned adjacent the wheel studs whereupon the lever-bar is raised, and at the same time the angulated' bracket moves along the bar towards the cradle 5 thereby maintaining the bar in an inclined position. When the cradle has been raised sufiiciently to align the studs with the ,wheel flange apertures, the angulated bracket is tightened to the desired amount.

Since various modifications can be made in my invention as hereinabove described, and many v apparently widely different embodiments of same made within the spirit and scope of the claim without departing from such spirit and scope, it is intended that all matter contained in the achaving an interior surface which is semi-circular to embrace said tire transversely, said cradle straddling said lever bar, means for adjusting the height of said cradle from the ground, and tire gripping means in said cradle, said tire gripping means including a tension spring extending from said lever bar to a point adjacent the upper forward edge of said cradle, said cradle being slotted to permit the registration of said spring within the semi-circular interior surface thereof.

FREDERICK G. VARABEAU.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

' UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,965,260 Rosenberg July 3, 1934 1,981,763 Usadel Nov. 20, 1934 2,207,443 Schneider July 9, 1940 

